


the memory of the trees

by hokusai (sumiregusa)



Category: Warriors - Erin Hunter
Genre: Coming of Age, Growing Old, Major and Minor Character Deaths, Multi, becoming aware of your own mortality, i wanted to write this when i was 12 and now im 20 and i don't care, takes place in the lake territories
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-11
Updated: 2019-08-11
Packaged: 2020-08-19 10:09:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,506
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20208004
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sumiregusa/pseuds/hokusai
Summary: An old she-cat reminisces.[cuts between the past and present]





	1. allegiances

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These allegiances are from when Stormstar was a kit. I will probably not include the allegiances from when Stormstar is a leader because it took me too long to come up these names and descriptions, and I'd rather chew sand before having to do this again. 
> 
> So sorry if the names/descriptions are repetitive, unoriginal, or having already been made.

**THUNDERCLAN**

Leader: Dovestar (pale gray she-cat with a long tail and golden eyes)  
Deputy: Swayingleaf (brown tabby she-cat with a white chest and paws and green eyes)  
Medicine cat: Sootnose (dark gray tom)  
_ Apprentice:_ Robinpaw (red tom with green eyes and a white tail tip)

Warriors:  
Smokerise (gray tom with golden eyes)  
_ Apprentice: Twistedpaw_  
Moonfur (silver tabby she-cat with blue eyes)  
_ Apprentice: Cloudypaw_  
Ripplepelt (reddish brown tabby tom with a white chest)  
Cedarclaw (dark gray tabby tom with golden eyes)  
Goldenbreeze (yellow long haired she cat)  
Thornwing (light brown tabby tom)  
Sweeteyes (dark brown she cat with white patches and blue eyes)  
Hazelfern (brown and gray she cat with dark blue eyes)  
_ Apprentice: Bramblepaw_  
Tawnydrop (tortoiseshell she-cat with brown eyes)  
Emberclaw (russet colored she-cat with yellow eyes and white paws)  
_ Apprentice: Streampaw_  
Brightpool (pretty white she-cat)  
_ Apprentice: Mothpaw_  
Sparrowpelt (russet colored tom)  
Bravestep (brown tom with green eyes)  
Hawktail (brown tabby tom)  
_ Apprentice: Finchpaw_  
Birchtooth (brown and white tom)  
Dapplepool (tortoiseshell and white she-cat)  
Stonegaze (gray tom)  
Smallfoot (orange tom)

Apprentices:  
Cloudypaw (gray tom with white patches)  
Streampaw (gray tabby she-cat with white patches)  
Briarpaw (dark brown she-cat and green eyes)  
Bramblepaw (brown tabby with white underbelly and green eyes)  
Finchpaw (cream colored tom)  
Mothpaw (yellow colored she-cat)  
Twistedpaw (brown tom with white paws)

Queens:  
Echolight (pretty silver she-cat)  
_Kits:_ Nightkit (black she-cat with blue eyes), Rainkit (dark gray tom with blue eyes), and Stormkit (gray she-cat with golden eyes)  
Firesong (pale orange she-cat with green eyes)  
_Kits:_ Fernkit (pale orange she-cat with a white chest) and Rabbitkit (black and white tom)  
Fennelwing (gray tabby she-cat with green eyes)

Elders:  
Graywhisker (gray tom)  
Mousestep (small brown she-cat)  
Deerstep (dark brown she-cat)

**RIVERCLAN**

Leader: Brightstar (brown and white she-cat with blue eyes)  
Deputy: Tallreed (black and white tom)  
Medicine cat: Mossdream (brown and white tabby with green eyes)

Warriors:  
Lowpelt (gray tom)  
Ashwillow (dark gray she-cat with white paws)  
Aspensplash (white and gray she-cat)  
_ Apprentice: Silverpaw_  
Greenheart (brown tom with green eyes)  
Brindleflight (brown tabby she-cat)  
Thistlenose (large white tom)  
Plumbranch (black she-cat with yellow eyes)  
Logslip (brown tom)  
Tangledfur (reddish brown she-cat)  
_ Apprentice: Larkpaw_  
Slatefoot (dark gray tom)  
Hollyfrost (black she-cat)  
Creekstripe (gray tom with tabby stripes on his legs)  
Fawnsplash (light brown she-cat with green eyes and white chest)  
Sandclaw (light brown tom)  
Tidefoot (light gray tabby she-cat)

Apprentices:  
Silverpaw (light gray she-cat)  
Larkpaw (light gray she-cat)

Queens:  
Softpelt (long-haired gray she-cat)  
Rainstep (dark gray she-cat with a mottled pelt)  
Tulipnose (light brown and white she-cat with green eyes)  
_ Kits:_ Whitekit (white tom) and Muddykit (white tom with brown patches)  
Poppysky (red she-cat)

Elders:  
Fogwhisker (dark gray tom)  
Oakfoot (reddish brown tom with white paws)

**SHADOWCLAN**

Leader: Duskstar (dark gray tom with yellow eyes)  
Deputy: Swallowfang (dark brown she-cat with yellow eyes)  
Medicine cat: Flamecloud (red tom)

Warriors:  
Blackfoot (black tom)  
_ Apprentice: Doepaw_  
Sharpclaw (brown tabby she-cat)  
Foxtail (red tom with a white tail tip)  
Patchstep (longed haired black and white tom)  
Shimmertail (pretty silver-gray she-cat)  
Halfeye (dark brown tom with one eye)  
Oddthroat (dark brown tom with a white neck)  
Feathermoon (light gray she-cat with blue eyes)  
_ Apprentice: Spottedpaw_  
Marshwing (brown tom)  
Shellwhisper (gray and white tom)  
Petalclaw (dark bown she-cat)  
Mossyfoot (brown and white she-cat)  
Shadefur (long-haired black tom)  
_ Apprentice: Runningpaw_  
Brackensnow (brown tom with blue eyes)  
Kestrelfur (light brown she-cat with blue eyes)  
Graymouth (gray she-cat with a darker muzzle)  
Tatteredfoot (dark gray tom)

Apprentices:  
Doepaw (a pretty, light brown she-cat)  
Runningpaw (black and white tom)  
Spottedpaw (brown tom)

Queens:  
Icefur (white she-cat with yellow eyes)  
Ravenfeather (sleek black she-cat)  
Rushpoppy (long-haired red she-cat)

Elders:  
Frogjump (brown tom with a crooked tail)

**WINDCLAND**

Leader: Risingstar (deep brown she-cat with green eyes)  
Deputy: Rockfur (brown tom)  
Medicine cat: Honeysting (yellow tabby she-cat) and Silvermist (silver she-cat with long legs)

Warriors:  
Junipernose (cream colored she-cat)  
Jumpingleaf (brown and white tom)  
_ Apprentice: Rootpaw_  
Willowdawn (light gray she-cat)  
_ Apprentice: Dustpaw_  
Tornpelt (black tom with white patches)  
Falconclaw (light brown tom with white paws)  
_ Apprentice: Owlpaw_  
Nettlewhisper (brown she-cat with green eyes)  
Bluewhisker (dark gray tom)  
Haresong (brown tom)  
_ Apprentice: Adderpaw_  
Swiftclaw (small black and white tom)  
Goldenpoppy (yellow she-cat with amber eyes)  
Twigfur (brown tom)  
Grassclaw (gray tom with amber eyes)  
_Apparentice: Blazepaw_  
Mistydream (light gray she-cat)  
_ Apprentice: Blossompaw_  
Birdflight (small brown she-cat)

Apprentices:  
Blazepaw (handsome cream and white tom with amber eyes)  
Dustpaw (brown tabby tom)  
Blossompaw (light brown tabby she-cat)  
Rootpaw (brown tom)  
Adderpaw (russet colored tom)  
Owlpaw (gray and white tom with amber eyes)

Queens:  
Cinderfang (dark gray she-cat)  
_ Kits:_ Snowkit (white she-cat with amber eyes) and Frostkit (white she-cat with green eyes)  
Gooseheart (white and gray she-cat)  
_Kits:_ Heatherkit (gray she-cat with green eyes) and Amberkit (russet colored tom)

Elders:  
Longfur (long-haired white and cream colored tom)


	2. dawn

It is a silver morning like any other, but today Stormstar truly feels the weight of her final life upon her. She wakes slowly, still caught in the tailwinds of her dreams. Lately, her dreams have become increasingly vivid. There were times she woke still smelling the milky scent of her mother when she was kit, curled between her two littermates during those new-leaf evenings, but it quickly fades into her own scent and the moss of her bedding. Last night, she had dreamt of her days as a warrior, newly appointed and spry. Oh, how she missed those days of hunting and running.

She stands on her quivering legs, attempting to stretch. She has grown stiff over the years, and the moons have not been kind to her. Yet Stormstar had never expected things to become easier as she aged. She had seen her father in those finals moons of her life, limping and skinny and dull. When her father joined the ranks of Starclan, Stormstar had convinced herself it was a sort of mercy; her father would be rejoined with her mother, and she would no longer be suffering from his old battle wounds. 

She pushes through the thickets of the entrance of her den, moving slowly as she spies warriors returning from morning patrol and hunting. The fresh-kill pile is well stocked, and Stormstar can only hope it will continue to flourish as new-leaf finally arrives. 

A strange thing has happened to Stormstar over the past few moons. She had become embarrassed by her old age, apparent by her white muzzle and slow gait. She often relegates the Clan duties to her young deputy and despises any attention put on her. The Gathering has become the worst part of her life. She can see the other leader, young and strong, eyeing her withering form. Stormstar refused to let her Clan appear weak due to her own mortality. 

Stormstar regards her warriors from a distance, not quite wanting to speak to any of them only for the fact that she was not much in a talking mood. She had already acknowledged that she was not truly a leader anymore when she is in the camp, but she isn’t ready to step down either. When she was a kit, the elders told a story of a leader who abandoned the warrior life to become a kittypet. His deputy only received eight lives since the last leader still clung to his ninth in the comfort of Twolegs. Stormstar refused to allow that to happen to Ivycloud. She had become selfish over the years, but not enough to do that to her. 

The wind blew, and Stormstar’s heart leapt into her throat when she catches a scent she had nearly forgotten. She trots towards the entrance, moving faster than she has in an entire moon, ears forward. 

One of the current guards, her niece Shadepool, notices her approach. “Stormstar?” she asks, hesitance in her voice. “Is all well?”

Stormstar considers the question. “I am going out for a walk,” is all she says. She can vaguely hear her niece stutter out something before the sound of her running back into the camp. 

Stormstar is aware of how loud she is now despite her hearing having faded from its peak long ago. She knows that she is more likely to attract a fox and scare off the prey if she should ever try to hunt at this age. 

The forest is always the same no matter how many moons pass. The only things that change are the leaves and grass. The trees remain. She steps over the roots she tripped over as an apprentice, the pebbles that rolled under her paws as she chased a rabbit as a warrior. The sunlight feels the same as it did when she was a kit; warm and golden and comforting. 

The smell of water grows stronger, until the soft, budding grass gives way to pale sand and the glittering lake. Her body sags, sinking onto the ground. She tucks her paws beneath her body, soothed by the constant push and pull of the waves. 

Briarheart’s scent had faded when she stepped out of the forest. It is as if her old friend had tried and succeeded in getting Stormstar some fresh air. 

The old she-cat let out a long sigh, eyes drifting up towards the sky. Gray clouds were unfurling over the mountains, blue beginning to seep into every other color in the sky. Perhaps her eyes are deceiving her, but Stormstar believe she can see a couple of stars before they blink out of existence. 

The thought of Briarheart brings back an unexpected memory for Stormstar. It is an unimportant memory, but it is a memory of rest and unhurried thoughts. She recalls a quaint evening in green-leaf, a few moons before Briarheart was killed. Unaware of what is to come, the two she-cats had feasted together on a squirrel and shared tongues. Back then, Stormstar’s biggest concern was if Bramblefur would return her affections, since she was aware that Streampelt was also interested in the tom as a mate. 

What would she call those days? Days of innocence? Stormstar and ThunderClan as a whole had suffered from deaths, disease, and needless fighting among the other Clans, but this was before Briarheart’s death, before Nightfall’s, before Bramblefur’s, before the deaths of those dearest to her. 

“Stormstar,” a voice said from behind her. 

Embarrassed that she hadn’t heard her come, Stormstar’s head swivels to see her eldest daughter trotting towards her. Other cats say that Sagesong is the spitting image of Stormstar, the way that Shadepool is of Nightfall, but Stormstar has always silently thought that Sagesong looked the most like Stormstar’s mother out of all her kits. So when she catches sight of her in the morning light, her thoughts choke her into almost believe that she is her mother. A ghost perhaps. 

“Sagesong,” she greets carefully, feeling her daughter’s nose brush against her ear. “What brings you here?”

There is an obvious pause from her daughter before she settles against her side. “Shadepool came running into the warriors’ den, saying that you had left the camp.”

Stormstar chuckle, imagining her niece barging into a den of sleeping warriors, yowling. “Shadepool certainly gets your attention.”

“Yes, but she did not lie.” Another pause. “I understand that you must be tired of being cooped up in the camp all day, but it is dangerous for you to leave without protection.”

Maybe six moons ago, Stormstar would have been offended by what Sagesong is saying. But today, she only nods her head. She is old and tired, and she will only ever be old and tired until she dies. The older she has gotten, Stormstar realized how much elders and kits have in common. Perhaps that is why she had gotten along so well with the elders before she became an apprentice. 

“Forgive me for my recklessness,” she finds herself saying, voice on the cusp of a whisper. “I have been… reminiscing on my past recently. I thought I smelled an old friend.”

“Oh,” Sagesong responds, surprise in her voice. “May I ask who?”

“Briarheart. I don’t know if you remember us mentioning her, but she was your father’s sister.”

“I remember. She died before I was born, right?”

Stormstar nods her head, eyes beginning to focus on the dark shadows in the lake. Briarheart’s death was, and still is, a tragedy. She should never had died. She thinks of all those moons sharing a den together, first the apprentices’ and then the warriors’. Afternoons of hunting, patrolling the borders, sticking together at Gatherings. Besides her siblings, Stormstar considered Briarheart to be her closest companion. 

“She was a great warrior, and an even greater friend,” Stormstar murmurs. “I think StarClan sends her to be during troubled times as I always have dreams of her – of us – having fun.”

“You speak of her as if she is your mate,” Sagesong teases gently, giving her mother a firm lick. 

“I think of your father every day.” She pauses, unsure of how to go on. Sagesong was an apprentice when he died, and Stormstar was pregnant with their second litter. She knows her daughter’s pain. They suffered and grieved together as they wondered for the moons to come of what exactly had happened to him. 

Robinwing had told her that he had died after he visited the Moonpool. The answer was so obvious, but Stormstar only felt more grieved. Her mate had died alone, some place she would not reach him. She only prayed that he was not in pain, that his death had come shortly and sweetly without delay. She could never forgive herself if he suffered like she did. 

“Would you like to return to camp?” Sagesong asks gently after a few minutes of silence. 

Stormstar shakes her head. “Perhaps in a little bit,” she tells her. “I think I just want to sit and watch the waves.”

“Of course,” Sagesong says, standing. “I will be over there if you need me.” Her head nods in the direction of the forest, in the direction of home. 

Stormstar hears her paws padding on the sand and grass before the wave sounds overcome her senses. The light is glittering on the lake, white and crystal as the sun rises further into the sky. 

The day reminds her of a time when she and her siblings were apprentices. They had finally received some free time after grueling hours of training. They were still so full of energy and life that they couldn’t just sleep the afternoon away. She recalls leaping onto her sister’s back, the two tumbling together as their brother joined the fray. Their shouts were gleeful and carefree. She thinks she remembers someone else being there. Stormstar couldn’t remember if it was her mentor or her mother or a different warrior. 

But where were they? Stormstar couldn’t remember if they were in the camp, in the clearing, or by the lake. She thinks it may have been the latter one, remembering some sort of sparkle in the air above them. But she doesn’t recognize the shoreline if it was. It even the shoreline looks different now. So much time has passed since then. 

**Author's Note:**

> sorry if some of these names are dumb, repetitive, or unoriginal lol


End file.
